Guilty Until Proven Innocent
by RandomRavenclaw10
Summary: When 19-year-old Erza gets kidnapped by her childhood friends and brought back to the place of her nightmares, what will happen? When Simon gets murdered, Jellal is accused. Is he innocent or guilty? The corrupt government in southern Fiore sure thinks he's the culprit. But does Erza? Will she be able to prove him innocent? Because Jellal will be guilty until he is proven innocent.
1. Prolouge

**_Hey! I know you guys are all gonna say, update Stolen Keys already, but I've been really busy with school and homework. The only reason I am posting this right now is that it is actually an English assignment, so I decided to make it into a fanfic. This is the prologue, it's supposed to be short. Also, this story will be completed by the end of April, unless I decide to write more than what is necessary for the assignment. Hope you enjoy! The next part should be out by Wednesday._**

**_also, i had just enough space for my summary. This is an AU, no magic. The rest of team Natsu/fairy tail will not be involved in this story unless, as said previously, I decided to keep going with it after my assignment. may be slight Jerza, we'll see. _**

_1776, Tower of Heaven, Southern Coast of Fiore_

_An eleven-year-old girl quivers in fear as those around her are forced to do labour work. She has had enough of this pain. This suffering. Her face is stained with salty tears, but she has no more to cry. She hopes and prays that she will see the light of the sun again. That she will be freed from this wretched place. The pain and suffering which they have all been put through is unimaginable; inhumane. _

"_Hey you," one of the so-called caretakers yells at her. "Get over here." Little Erza glares at the man before turning and running the other way, her companions in tow. Jellal, Sho, Millianna, and Simon. The only reason why she was still sane. The five of them had to stick together, and get out of this horror story. _

**Please review and comment! Constructive feedback is appreciated. Thanks for reading. **


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Erza Scarlet was a warrior. From a very young age, she had been trained to fight, and she was damn good at it. She owned a vast collection of armour and weaponry, all of which she could skillfully use. Give her a bow and arrow and she would hit the bull's eye every time. Give her a mace and her enemy would walk out with a fractured skull at the least. With a spear, she would pierce her opponent's heart out, and with a sword… she was unstoppable. Take away her weaponry, and she would beat you with her bare fists. After all, she was the Lieutenant of Fiore's Strongest Army division after all. Erza Scarlet, the scarlet demon, only had one weakness: strawberry cake. More specifically, strawberry cheesecake. Gift her some of this delectable dessert and you might just get into her good graces. However, if you were as foolish as to interrupt her whilst eating, you would surely regret it.

Erza was as beautiful as she was strong. Her smooth fair skin and deep chestnut eyes attracted many, but they all cowered away in fear. Her waist length scarlet hair gave her her last name, Scarlet. _Jellal _she thought, but quickly pushed the name out of her head before she had a breakdown. Ever since the traumatic events of her childhood, Erza had locked herself away in a suit of armour, seeming strong to many, when really, she was trying to keep the broken pieces of her heart from falling apart for good. That homeless shelter had broken her and taken away her innocence at such a young age, and she was one of the lucky ones that managed to escape. She could only imagine what Jellal, Millianna, and Shou were still going through.

As Erza wandered along the beach, she was so lost in thought that she failed to notice a familiar face in the distance. She was usually aware, guard up, armour on, sword at hand, but she had decided to put it all on pause while on vacation. Relax and take a breather from all the stress. She sure needed one after fighting in the recent Civil War. Scars, both mental and physical were gained over the past few weeks. As a Lieutenant, she rarely got time off, so she was going to make the most of this break.

Erza continued to be clueless as the person trailed behind her. Soon, two other faces which she would have recognized had she turned around, joined the first person and they continued to trail the female as she turned back along the beach and headed back to her resort. The mysterious figures watched as she sat down at the beachside bar and was soon served a strawberry margarita. She was about to take a sip of the refreshing cocktail when she heard a familiar voice call out to her.

"Erza?" the soft ocean breeze carried her name through the wind. Said girl turned around and stared in shock at the faces in front of her.

"S-Simon? M-Millianna? Shou?" she gasped, springing out of her seat. Millions of thoughts and questions began racing through her mind all at once. _H-h-how? How did they escape? Are they ok? How did they find me? What are they doing here? _The memories of that dismal homeless shelter flashed through her mind.

_1776, Tower of Heaven, Southern Coast of Fiore_

"_Come on Erza," Jellal encouraged her, holding out a small hand for her to take. She wiped away the tears on her face and took his hand, a wide smile now on her face. "Let's go" she whispered. Jellal lead the way as Erza, Simon, Shou and Millianna followed behind him. The five children quietly crept through the dingy basement of the shelter. Today they were going to finally escape from his wretched place. _

"_I heard something from over there," One of the guards yelled, causing the Erza, Simon, Shou and Millianna to panic. _

"_Stay calm," Jellal whispered under his breath. "Let's go hide over here," he pointed to an old broom closet. The five of them quickly hid and held their breath as the guard passed by. When they heard the footsteps fade away, they cautiously came out of the closet breathing heavily. Little did they know that the guard was standing right there. The five kids stood frozen to the ground as the guard smiled in glee. _

"_Some kids trying to run away huh? Well, you'll be sorry you ever screwed up thing silly little plan" He stared down with a sadistic grin, a cruel twinkle in his eyes. "So tell me, whose plan was this. If you tell me, only one of you will get punished. Now, who will be a good kid and spill it?" He stared menacingly at the five children who were scared to death. _

"_It was me," Simon said bravely yet nervously. _

"_Was it now?" The guard questioned. Little Simon stared back uncertainty. "Don't think you can fool me. You don't look nearly smart enough to devise this plan, much less make up a convincing lie." Simon stared in disbelief at the monster in front of him. "Ahh. It was you wasn't it?" the guard said staring at Jellal. _

"_N-no sir" The blue-haired boy stuttered, but the guard was not buying it. Little Erza watched in horror as the guard grabbed her friend by the collar and turned to face the other four children. _

"_Now you all better scurry back to your room, or there will be consequences. You wouldn't want your friend here to get twice the punishment now, would you?" he said to them before dragging Jellal off by the collar of his shirt, the boy's choked screams fading into the distance. _

"Erza!" Simon said again, bringing the redhead back to the present.

"Simon!" She gasped again as she engulfed him in a giant hug. After a while, she released him and did the same to Shou and Millianna. "It's been so long!" She exclaimed. "How did you escape from that place? What are you doing here? How did you find me?" she questioned them. A whirlwind of emotions hit her like a ton of bricks. Sadness, guilt, joy. She had abandoned her best friends all those years ago, yet here they were. They had found her at last.

"Calm down Erza. Take a seat and we'll explain everything. We sure have a lot of catching up to do." He smiled.

"Ok," Erza whispered quietly as she sat down with her long lost friends, waiting for the opportunity for all her questions to be answered. She reached for her margarita a took a sip of the refreshing liquid. The cool strawberry flavour calmed her down at once and she gazed back at her friends with a big smile on her face, ready to hear about the last eight year of their lives. She remembered those days when it was the five of them. _Wait, five of us. _Erza remembered.

"Where's Jellal?" Erza asked, almost in a demanding tone. He had once been the most important person in her life. He had given her her last name, he had given her hope. But most importantly, he had made her smile despite the horrors she was experiencing. Suddenly, Erza felt her energy sucked out of her and her eyes began to droop. She gasped, as her arm went limp and her glass fell to the floor, a mixture of shattered glass and pink liquid mixing into the sand.

"You'll find out soon enough, Erzy Werzy" Millianna said to Erza before the feeling of exhaustion took over, and her world went black.


	3. Chapter 2

**Hey, guys, I'm back! I know I said this would be done by the end of April, but it actually the rough draft which is due tomorrow for me, and the final draft the following week. I have most of it written, just need to fill in some plot holes I had trouble with. Should have the rest done by next Friday. Also, I know this is a shorter chapter, I just wanted to separate it out so instead, I am posting two chapters. Enjoy and please review!**

**I don't know if I put this last chapter, but, I DO NOT own Fairy Tail, that would be Hiro Mashima. I can't even draw nevermind create a manga. **

Chapter 2

"They'd better let him go now," Simon's voice echoed through the dark, dingy room. The cramped space smelled of mould, and an eerie silence rang throughout. Erza Scarlet laid on a bed, metal cuffs tying her limbs down to the splintered wooden frame. "If they don't, I'm going to give them a piece of my mind," Simon stated, anger resonating from his deep voice.

"Calm down, Simon," Millianna told him. "Remember what Jellal said? Don't act rash. If we defy them, then we are all as good as dead. What good would that do for him, huh? Just hang in there. Now that we've done what they want, they will let him go." _Hopefully, _she thought to herself.

Soon the Lieutenant began to stir. Her deep chestnut eyes opened to reveal the three figures standing in the ill-lit room. She immediately noticed the cold metal around her wrists and ankles and tried to break free, but to no avail.

"It's no use Erza. You can't escape this time," Shou said. "You're stuck with us now."

"Where am I?" Erza demanded. "Why have you brought me here? Where's Jellal?"

"Slow down Erza. We will explain. Just relax." Simon interjected.

"Maybe it would help if you made this feel more like a reunion and less like a kidnapping," she snapped. Millianna complied, releasing the cuffs that bound Erza's limbs to the bed. At once, the redhead walked over to the corner of the room and retrieved her sheathed sword, slipping its harness over her shoulder. Having it there put her nerves at ease. It wasn't until she had calmed down that she sat back down on the wooden bed frame, waiting for answers.

"Well, they took Jellal. And by they, I mean the owner of this place. Everyone refers to them as U.M." Millianna took a deep breath before continuing. "U.M. took Jellal and told us that unless we did what they wanted, they would kill him. We couldn't let him die Erza!" Millianna's tear stained face turned towards Erza, her eyes avoiding her friends. "We just couldn't!"

"And the job they wanted you to do?" Erza asked.

"T-they wanted us to bring you here. We don't know what they want from you, but we couldn't just let them kill him. Please Erza, you have to understand."

"Where's Jellal?" Erza asked again.

"Erza, I'm not lying I swear. U.M. has him and if you aren't here when they come, Jellal is as good as dead. "

"No, I mean where are they keeping him?"

"In the prisoners' room on the top floor, but Erza there's nothing we can-"

"No, there is plenty that we can do. If U.M wants me, they can come and find me, after all of you are safe. Jellal too. I'm going to get him out of there, and unless you want U.M to take you hostage in his place, I suggest you get out of here. Jellal and I will meet you by the back door within half an hour." She said before standing up abruptly and walking out of the room, leaving the others there in shock.

"I'm coming with you" Simon stated. "Can't have you acting rashly and getting yourself into trouble. Reminds me of when we were kids. You really haven't grown up one bit."

"Fine. But if I tell you to leave me behind and leave, you will."

"But Erza-"

"No buts. If you want to come, you will agree to my condition. If not, I will go alone."

"Okay." Simon acquiesced, and with that, the two headed off to save their dear friend.


	4. Chapter 3

**Another chapter for yall. Yeah, I know. 3 paragraphs isn't a lot. **

**I still don't own Fairy Tail.**

Chapter 3

Simon and Erza wasted no time and reached the top floor quickly. After stealthily knocking out the two guards positioned at the top of the staircase, the scarlet-haired female motioned to her companion to follow. The Lieutenant proceeded towards the prisoner room which was barricaded by another three guards.

"I'll take the two on the right," the female whispered. Simon nodded in response and snuck up behind his man, hitting them on the head from behind, effectively knocking the man out. When he turned around, Erza stood before two unconscious figures, a key ring in her hand. She carefully opened the door using the biggest key. The door led to a room full of cells, most of which were inhabited by dead bodies. In the third cell was Jellal. He was pale and malnourished, his fragile figure like a delicate flower, easy to knock off its stem. It could easily be seen that he was not in good condition. His face and hands were covered in grime, and his blue hair looked more like a dusty grey. The bags on his eyes were barely visible due to the thick layer of soot on his skin. For Erza, seeing him like this reminded her that it was all her fault. She had chosen to leave them all here. It was her that had decided to give in to the demands of U.M. That her freedom was worth their suffering. Gazing upon her best friend, the one who would do anything for her, reminded her that she didn't deserve her friends. She had abandoned them when they needed her the most. Left them to wither away and rot in a place they despised. Erza quickly pulled Jellal into a tight embrace, burying her tear-stained face into this fragile shoulder before turning around, a look of deep sorrow and shame in her eyes. She then helped Jellal to shift his weight over to Simon before instructing the pair to leave.

"We need to get out of here. You two head to the back exit. I will meet up with you once I've made sure no one saw us. I also have a little something I need to do before I leave for good," Erza told her comrades. She was back here, so she may as well retrieve her old belongings which she had left behind all those years ago. If she happened to run into the mysterious owner of this desolate excuse for a homeless shelter, she would give them a piece of her mind.


End file.
